Suspended sentence for attack woman

A pregnant woman has been given a suspended sentence forattacking her neighbour's home with a hammer.

Claire Johnston, 21, of Corston View in Odd Down, was given aneight-week prison sentence, suspended for one year, for an incidentwhich took place on September 14.

She had pleaded guilty to criminal damage and been convicted ofassault and a public order offence at an earlier hearing.

In the early hours of the morning she had approached a homeelsewhere in Odd Down and been caught on CCTV smashing the glass ofthe front door with a hammer.

Around an hour after the 12.15am attack, the mother of the familywho live in the house, who cannot be named for legal reasons, hadgone to an alleyway close to the house.

There, her husband and a friend had confronted Johnston and afemale friend of Johnston's.

Her husband told the mother to leave, but the two other womenscreamed profanities at her before Johnston rushed at her and forcedher against the alleyway fence.

The victim, who was left with a small mark on the left hand sideof her eye, managed to run back to her home while the two menrestrained the women.

At 6.55pm that same day the family's teenage daughter had gone toa nearby park with a group of friends.

Johnston arrived at the park a few moments later with anotherwoman and started pointing at the girl and walked quickly towardsher.

Kelly Marshall, prosecuting, told Bath Magistrates' Court thisweek that the girl feared for her life.

She said: "She feared for what might happen so she began to walkaway. They were shouting behind her so she started to run and toldher friends to run with her.

"She was crying a lot because she was so scared."

The court heard that Johnston had said: "I'm going to f..... killyou and your f...... mother."

The girl's father arrived at the park and the youngster got intohis car and he drove off.

Jonathan Lewis, defending, said Johnston had become involved withan argument between a friend and the family.

He said: "It was with a misguided sense of loyalty that shebecame involved."

He also told the court that Johnston, who has had communityorders and curfews in the past, was now six months pregnant and hadturned her life around with the support of her mother.

Mr Lewis added that his client had had drugs problems in the pastbut had been on methadone for the past two years and had been seeinga support worker on a weekly basis.

Johnston was also ordered to pay pounds300 compensation to thevictim for the assault and the damage to the door.